Teaching My Students How to Use their Voices and Persevere

By Ms. Stephanie Gates, Social Studies and Civics Teacher at Hampton Fine and Performing Arts Elementary School

When I was searching for my first teaching job, I remember going in for an interview and meeting a young man who was applying for the same position as me. The principal joked: “Put both of them in the classroom, and we’ll see who is left standing at the end of the week.” The young man had arrived for the interview before me, so he ended up getting the job. 

He lasted one week, so they ended up calling me back. I filled the position—the fourth teacher so far that school year, and it was only October! With the revolving door of teachers, the students decided to see how many teachers they could get rid of.  I lasted that entire school year and stayed at that school for ten years. So, when I say that perseverance has been key since my first year as a teacher, I mean it. 

This past school year—nearly 30 years later—brought challenges that I had never faced before. Though I was familiar with Google Classroom, I had to figure out how to teach virtually in the most effective way possible. One issue was that in the beginning, I could only see 16 faces on my screen at a time and I had at least 25 students in each class.  Another was that my students were hesitant to ask questions or request help in a virtual setting. 

So, I got creative and used a variety of different resources to keep my students engaged. I used GoGuardian as another avenue to meet my students where they were by sending them messages to assist them, and I incorporated Jamboards and resources from Flocabulary to give my lessons more depth. My attendance in my homeroom was great. I had an awesome group of scholars who even helped me out when I  stumbled with the technology. We truly persevered alongside each other. 

I joined the Transformative Teaching Cohort (TTC) this year because I have been a longtime advocate for increasing student voice and student advocacy in my classroom. This past year, something I heard consistently from my middle school students was that remote learning was overwhelming because they had to log on to so many different Google Meets and keep track of so many different classes. 

My teaching style is reflective and flexible, so I listened closely to my students and ended up reducing the number of assignments as well as checking in with them more frequently to ensure they felt like they had what they needed to succeed academically. I also aligned my instruction with my school’s focus on personalized learning by sharing a menu of assignments on Monday that students had the whole week to complete, allowing them to work at their own pace. 

By participating in the TTC, I know that I will be able to build upon some of my successes in amplifying student voices throughout my career. One of my most meaningful tools has been Unity Circles, which I created to normalize students complimenting and constructively criticizing each other as a way of resolving conflicts. There have been many powerful moments in these circles where students acknowledged wrongdoing or simply built stronger relationships with each other. 

As we look toward the first day of the new school year, August 30, I want my incoming students to know that they will be able to use their voices in my classroom. We will continue to persevere together, and I will always be an advocate for what they need. I want them to dwell on two questions: How can you use your voice to get your needs met? How can you use your voice for the better? 

Ms. Gates has taught at Hampton for the past nine years and has been an educator for 29 years. Make sure you are prepared for the first day of school by visiting cps.edu/b2s.